How Philae arrived at Skull Face

Rosetta’s Philae lander touched down on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on 12 November 2014 and made multiple contacts with the surface before arriving at its final resting place. Its second touchdown site was recently identified just 30 metres away from its final position. This animation shows how Philae flew across the surface towards skull face, interacting with the surface – as shown in the insets – before arriving at its final location.

Credits: Images: ESA/Rosetta/MPS for OSIRIS Team MPS/UPD/LAM/IAA/SSO/INTA/UPM/DASP/IDA; Analysis: O’Rourke et al (2020)